Career

Amateur career

Adam and Simon took up cycling after their father John was injured in a collision with a car while riding – during his recovery he took the twins to Manchester Velodrome to track sessions run by his cycling club, Bury Clarion, to keep in touch with the other members. Both brothers soon started riding on the road for Bury Clarion and on the track for Eastlands Velo. Whilst Simon was selected for the British Cycling Olympic Academy programme, Adam pursued his road racing career in France with financial help from the Dave Rayner Fund.[5]

Yates finished second by just 55 seconds to Spanish rider Ruben Fernandez in the general classification of the 2013 Tour de l'Avenir whilst representing the British national team.

Professional career

ORICA GreenEDGE (2014- present)

2014

Having spent a successful season with French amateur team CC Etupes, he joined the Australian UCI World Tour team Orica–GreenEDGE along with his brother in 2014.[4] In his first professional race, the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, Yates finished eleventh overall and first in the young rider classification.[6]

Yates' breakthrough results came at the Tour of Turkey in late April and early May 2014. He had been one of the team's protected riders for the general classification, along with his brother.[7] On the third stage, he became the team's de facto team leader, after Simon crashed out of the race, resulting in a suspected broken clavicle.[8] Yates was the only person to follow an attack by Rein Taaramäe on the final climb to Elmalı, and ultimately finished the stage in second place, six seconds down on Taaramäe after he had attacked again in the closing metres.[9] After two stages that suited the sprinters, Yates achieved his first professional victory on the sixth stage, finishing at the House of the Virgin Mary in Selçuk. A reduced peloton had formed on the final climb from which Yates attacked with around a kilometre remaining. Yates held off the chasers– led home by Davide Formolo and Davide Rebellin, two seconds in arrears– and was able to take the leader's blue jersey from Taaramäe, who crossed the line seven seconds behind Yates.[10][11] Yates held the race lead until its conclusion in Istanbul two days later; he extended his lead by a further four seconds on the final stage, as there was a split on the run-in, with only a 28-rider group being given the same time as stage winner, Mark Cavendish.[12] He later described the victory– the first British overall win at the Tour– as "unexpected", having set out with the ambition of winning stages.[13]

Yates next competed at the Tour of California. After being passed on the road by Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) on Stage 2, the 20km individual time trial around Folsom, he finished fourth on Stage 3, which finished on Mount Diablo, and fourth on Stage 6, which finished on Mountain High.[14] Yates finished fifth overall in the general classification, 2 minutes and 14 seconds behind the winner, Wiggins.

Yates' impressive form continued at the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he placed eighth on the first mountain top finish on Stage 2.[15] He finished third on Stage 5 after launching a late attack with Wilco Kelderman (Belkin Pro Cycling), and again finished third on Stage 8, a mountain-top finish at Courchevel. Yates finished the UCI World Tour race sixth overall.[16]

On 1 August 2015, Yates took his biggest victory to date by winning the Clásica de San Sebastián after attacking on the final climb as leader Greg Van Avermaet of BMC was involved in a crash with a race motorcycle, and holding off the chasers on the descent into San Sebastián. In the confusion after Van Avermaet's crash Yates did not realise he had won, so did not initially celebrate when crossing the finishing line.[23]